On the use of computational multi-body dynamics analysis in SLS-based 3D printing

In the context of additive manufacturing, we illustrate how computational multi-body dynamics (CMBD) analysis can (a) increase printing throughput; and, (b) play a role in improving the quality of 3D printed parts. Throughput is increased by packing the printing volume with as many parts as possible. The problem becomes one of determining where each component that needs to be printed finds itself inside the printing volume. Finding the position and orientation of each part is accomplished through CMBD analysis, a point illustrated through an example in which an open-source dynamics engine called Chrono is used to simulate the filling of the active printing volume with a dress that is subsequently 3D printed. This approach, which is general in purpose, enables one to print in one pass multiple parts that are virtually; i.e., through simulation, dropped inside the printing volume to fully fill it up, thus improving efficiencies. In relation to (b), we use million-body dynamics simulations to gauge how various granular mixture parameters and rolling regimes combine to ultimately control the roughness of the surface being sintered. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.